I’m making this thread as an easy reference for any new players who may be confused about all the lingo/jargon that is thrown around on these forums. I will be adding to this list often so if I missed anything (which I undoubtedly will) please remind me!

TK: A motion originally used for Sagat’s Tiger Knee in SF2. Input the QCF/QCB/Etc. before jumping so you use an aerial move as soon as you leave the ground. Down, down-back, back, up-back, kick, for example.Neutral jump: Jumping straight upxx: When used in combo notation, indicates a cancel. cr.MK xx Hado means crouching forward canceled into a Hadouken (see 2-in-1).PP/KK/PPP/KKK: 2 punches, 2 kicks, 3 punches, 3 kicks~: Press one button, then immediately press the other.

7 8 9
4 5 6
1 2 3

Number notation, often used for combos in Guilty Gear, Melty Blood, BlazBlue, and other anime fighting games. 5 refers to neutral, other joystick positions refer to you facing right.

I’m not 100% on my definitions of some of these, please correct me if you see anything that is wrong.

Startup frames: Number of frames before an attack is “active”.Active frames: Number of frames in which an attack can actually connect with the opponent.Recovery frames: After a move is active, you will be in recovery frames until you can attack again. Safe moves typically have low recovery frames.Frame advantage: When an attack connects (hit or blocked), you may recover faster or slower than your opponent. For example, if you are +5 on hit after an attack, you will recover 5 frames faster than your opponent and can link any attack that has a startup of 5 frames or less. Similarly, if you are -3 on block, that means your opponent recovers 3 frames faster than you and can punish you with any attack that has a startup of less than 3 frames.Block stun: How many frames an opponent is stunned for if they block the attack.Hit stun: How many frames an opponent is stunned for if they are hit by the attack.

**General Terms: **

2-in-1: Old term for canceling, used in the SF2 days.2df: 2D Fighter. Another netplay tool.

AA: Anti-air. An attack that hits in an area that is good for knocking the opponent out of the air.Airdash: A dash performed in the air (44, 66 in the air). Can be done in Guilty Gear, Melty Blood, BlazBlue, and many other anime fighting games. See also: IAD.Airthrow: Throw executed in the air, leaves the opponent on the ground like a normal throw. In some games, everyone can airthrow while in others, only some characters can. In SF4, the characters that can airthrow are Cammy, Chun-li, El Fuerte, and Guile.Air to Air: An aerial move commonly used to beat the opponent’s aerial moves.AHVB: Air Hyper Viper Beam. One of Cable’s supers in MvC2. Also known as just “Hyper Viper”.

Block String: A series of attacks that force the opponent to stay in blocking position. Used mainly for limiting their options, baiting responses, pushing them to the corner, etc.BnB/B&B: Bread and butter. Refers to basic combos that form the core of your gameplay.Boxer: The character that is known as Balrog in the US, and M.Bison in Japan.Buffer: Pressing the inputs for an attack while in a state that prevents the move from coming out (in block/hitstun, on the ground, during another move). Moves with multiple inputs can be simplified by pressing all but the last input while unable to attack, then just a single button press will be needed for the second attack to come out. Akuma can buffer most of the inputs for his SGS into a crouch forward/roundhouse to lower his hitbox as seen here: [media=youtube]SKhDcn9WjBg[/media] (0:00-3:00)

Charge: Charged attacks are executed by holding a direction for a certain amount of time, then pressing another direction and an attack button. In SF4, charged moves must be held for 2 seconds. Guile’s Sonic Boom is done by holding back for 2 seconds, then pressing forward and any punch.Chicken Wing: Another name for Fei Long’s Dragon Arc kick.Chip damage: Special moves, when blocked, still do a small amount of damage, which can be used to chip away at an opponent’s health.Claw: The character that is known as Vega in the US, and Balrog in JapanCommand throw: A throw that is not executed using the game’s standard throw input. Cannot be teched in most games. Examples are E.Honda’s Oicho Throw and Makoto’s Karakusa.Counterpick: Intentionally switching characters so that you have a better chance of beating the opponent. Can be considered a shady tactic. (See “matchup”)Crosshanded: Playing on a stick with your hands crossed: right hand on the joystick and left hand on the buttons.Crossup: A deceptive attack that makes the opponent guess which direction they need to block in.Custom Combo/CC: A technique in Street Fighter Alpha’s V-Ism, and Capcom vs. SNK’s A-Groove. Used to combo moves that shouldn’t normally be able to be linked together. Example: [media=youtube]JUOrBn7mUrI[/media]

Dead Angle Attack: Tool in Guilty Gear used by pressing forward and any 2 buttons. Attacks the enemy and knocks them away, even if they were in a combo (not usable during hit stun, only when blocking). Takes 50% tension. Known in BlazBlue as Counter Assault.DHC: Delayed Hyper Cancel. A feature in Marvel vs. Capcom 2 that allows one character’s hyper combo to be canceled into another on your team by adding the second input in before the first hyper combo has finished. A common example is Storm’s Lightning Storm (air HCB+PP) DHCed into Sentinel’s Drones (QCF+KK) super.Dictator: The character that is known as M.Bison in the US, and Vega in Japan.Dive kick: Aerial attack used by some characters to apply pressure, done by pressing down-forward+kick in the air. Used by Rufus in SF4, and Yun/Yang in SF3.Dizzy: When a character is hit too much in a short period of time, they will be rendered defenseless for a few seconds or until they are hit.

FADC: Focus attack dash cancel. Tool in SF4 for canceling moves into a focus attack that can be dashed out of. Can be used to make unsafe attacks unpunishable or to extend combos. Takes 2 EX bars.Faultless Defense: Defensive technique in Guilty Gear. Press back and hold 2 buttons. While FDing, enemies will be pushed away on block and you won’t take chip damage. Drains tension while active. Known in BlazBlue as Barrier, but does the same thing.FD Stop/FD Cancel: In Guilty Gear, BlazBlue, and other games, you can use Faultless Defense to cancel movement. For example, when running towards the enemy if you stop to block there are a few frames where your character skids to a halt. You can cancel these by going straight into Faultless Defense state.FRC: False Roman Cancel. A Roman Cancel performed during certain frames after certain moves. Flashes blue around your character rather than red, and takes only 25% tension. See also: Roman Cancel.FFF: Fierce Feint Fierce. A combo tool used by C.Viper in SF4.Footsies: A complicated playstyle combining spacing, zoning, and pokes. Generally refers to close- to mid-range poking that revolves around baiting the opponent to throw out a poke and punishing the whiff with your own.Frame trap: An attack that, when timed correctly, opens up enough of a gap for the opponent to try to attack but nothing the opponent does will come out fast enough to avoid being stuffed.

GGPO: An emulator/netplay tool developed by Ponder, used by many players for classic games such as 3S and A2/3. http://www.ggpo.net/Gouki: Akuma’s name in Japan.Grappler: Character with strong throws who often works hard to get in on the opponent, but does huge damage once he is in. Examples include Zangief from SF2/4, Hugo from SF3, Potemkin from GG, and Tager from BB.Guard break: Technique in MvC2 to render the opponent defenseless when switching a new character in. Once a character blocks in the air and returns to a non-blocking state, they cannot block again until they hit the ground. By hitting the new character as they appear onscreen, and hitting them again before they reach the ground (in a separate combo), they will not be able to block the second string and will be rendered defenseless. See this video for some examples: [media=youtube]FAaoEG5TU40[/media]Guard crush: Similar to a dizzy, but occurs after blocking too many attacks. Found in such games as Capcom vs. SNK and BlazBlue.

**Hit-confirm: **Using normal moves to lead into an unsafe special so that you don’t leave yourself in a dangerous situation. For example in 3S, Chun-li and many other characters hit-confirm their super combos with a crouch forward.Hitbox: The area/range of an attack or a character’s body (which is sometimes called “hurtbox”). Example: [media=youtube]daMh2pCo1FI[/media] (blue encompasses the area where the character can get hit and damaged by an attack. Red is for attacks).

IAD: Instant Air Dash. An air dash that uses the jump input as the first left/right input for the dash. Performed with the input 74 or 96. The up-left or up-right to jump counts as the first left/right input. See also: Airdash.Infinite: A combo that can be repeated an infinite number of times until the opponent is dead.Invincibility: Certain attacks are invincible during their duration. Ryu’s EX Shoryuken gives him upper body invincibility and can be used to beat out almost any attack.

JD: Just Defend, seen in Capcom vs. SNK 2, Guilty Gear, BlazBlue, among other games. Press back as the opponent’s attack lands to block while recovering faster.Jump Install: Technique in Guilty Gear that allows an attack that leaves you airborne to be canceled, basically adding an extra jump to your character. Most characters can do one double-jump or air dash, with jump installing you can do a second one. More info: http://www.dustloop.com/ggac/tech/ji.html

Kara cancel: Canceling the startup of one more into another. In SF4, Ken can kara cancel his step kick (toward+forward) into a throw, or Sagat can cancel his toward+short into an uppercut, knee, or fireball.

Link: Comboing from one attack to another that isn’t a cancel. Attacks can only be linked if the second attack comes out faster than the opponent recovers (see Frame Advantage).

Macro: Programmable command on a controller that allows for multiple inputs on one button press. Almost always banned in tournaments.Matchup: When two characters fight against each other at the pinnacle of perfect play, who has the better chance of winning. For example, Sagat vs. Zangief is a 7-3 matchup in Sagat’s favor because Zangief has a hard time getting in through Sagat’s fireball game.Meaty: An attack that hits an opponent as soon as they wake up to they are forced to block it in its later active frames. This is often an attack with high active frames such as SF4 M.Bison’s crouch short. When executed correctly, gives more frame advantage due to hitting later: there are less active frames to wait through.Mixup: Making the other player guess what you are about to do. Mixup options include high attacks, low attacks, throws, etc.MM: Money Match. A match played between two players for money. Depending on the amount at stake, may be first to 3, first to 5, FT10, etc.

Negative edge: The input that occurs when a button is released. Balrog’s (Boxer) Turn Around Punch uses negative edge: it charges up as long as you hold 3 punches or kicks, and hits the opponent when it is released.

OCV: One character victory. Can refer to one player winning a match for his team in team tournaments, or one character in team games such as Capcom vs. SNK 2.Okizeme/Oki: What you do when your opponent is getting off the ground.Option select: Exploiting the game’s input detection to give yourself the best option based on a certain input. For example in SF4, if you press down+jab+short, the game may use a crouching attack, or tech a throw, or do nothing. UltraDavid’s SF4 Option Select video: [media=youtube]tnXYcNgLE5M[/media]OTG: Off the ground. In some situations, characters can be hit off the ground to continue combos.Overhead: An attack that must be blocked standing. Most jumping attacks are overheads. An example is SF4 Sagat’s toward+fierce elbow attack.

Parry: In the SF3 series and CvS2’s P-Groove, an attack could be parried by pressing forward on the joystick as it hit you. This allowed players to punish better and avoid taking chip damage.Piano: Method of pressing buttons where you roll your fingers across the buttons like playing a piano’s keys.Plinking: Also known as Priority Linking. Inputting a second command one frame later to trick SF4’s input reader into thinking you pressed the first button twice. Kind of complicated, more info here: [media=youtube]SKhDcn9WjBg#t=3m30s[/media]Poking: Using relatively safe moves to “poke” at your opponent. Ryu’s crouch forward is a strong poke that you will see many players use.Priority: Determines whether an attack will beat, lose, or trade with another attack upon collision. Note: Not an actual value on a move, but rather a combination of speed, hitbox, etc.Proration: Extending a combo causes the remaining hits of the combo to do less damage. In SF4, the remaining damage of a combo is reduced by 10% for every hit over 2 (multi-hit attacks such as Ryu’s EX Tatsu count as only hitting once).Push Block: Tool in MvC2 done by pressing back+PP as an opponent’s attack lands. Pushes them away from you and negates chip damage. Similar to Guilty Gear’s Faultless Defense. (Someone confirm this one, I don’t play Marvel).

Quick recover: Recovering off the ground faster than normal. Done with a different input in different games.

Ranbat: Ranking battle. A series of tournaments where the top placers get points toward their overall standing. After several tournaments, the points winner wins the pot accumulated over the course of the series. Often played over several weeks.RC: Roll Cancel. Technique in CvS2 where a special move is input during the first 3 frames of a roll. The special inherits any special characteristics of the roll, such as being invincible for a short period. See also: Roll.Read: Understanding the opponent’s patterns to guess what he or she is going to do before they do it.Reset: An attack that knocks the opponent out of the air back onto his feet, “resetting” his position.Reversal: Using an attack in the first frames coming out of a state in which you cannot attack (waking up, coming out of blockstun, etc). For example, Akuma can use his Raging Demon super to punish E.Honda’s blocked Sumo Headbutt when he has reversal timing.Reverse OCV: Reverse One Character Victory. In a team game or tournament, the last character/player on a team stops the other team’s first character/player and goes on to defeat all remaining opponents. See also: OCV.Roll: Technique in SNK games and CvS2, where a character rolls forward and gains some limited invincibility. Performed by pressing jab and short (LP+LK). See also: Roll Cancel (RC).Roman Cancel: A cancel used in Guilty Gear by pressing any three attack buttons. Takes 50% of your tension and returns you to a neutral position, can be used to extend combos or make moves safe on block.RTSD: Rush that shit down!Rushdown: A style of play that revolves around attacking quickly to make the opponent guess what you are going to do. Often goes hand-in-hand with mixup. Certain characters play better with a rushdown style, such as Akuma and Makoto in SF3.

SA1/2/3: Super Arts 1, 2 and 3. In Street Fighter 3, characters had 3 super attacks they could choose from before the match started.Safe jump: A jumping attack on a knocked-down opponent timed to be safe regardless of the opponent’s response. Additional information:
Safe Jump

[details=Spoiler]A safe jump is a tactic used against a knocked-down opponent to pressure them with little to no risk. In most fighting games, characters who have special moves that are invincible for a few moments can perform them the first possible moment after being knocked down (with reversal timing - include link to Reversal definition) to counter any attacks. For example, in SF4, if you knock Sagat down and try to sweep him as he gets up, he can perform a reversal Tiger Uppercut, which will beat the sweep because Tiger Uppercut is invincible for a moment when it is first executed (on startup, include link to Startup definition). Safe jumps take advantage of the fact that most moves of this type are immediately invincible, but cannot actually hit the opponent until a few moments later. Going back to the Sagat example, all versions of Tiger Uppercut have 5 frames (include link to Frame definition) of startup - that is, the attack does not hit the opponent for the first 5/60ths of a second of the move. If timed correctly, a character performing a jumping attack against a knocked-down Sagat can land during this 5-frame window and be blocking before the Tiger Uppercut hits. This is a very powerful technique, as when executed correctly, all possible outcomes are advantageous or neutral for the attacker:

Sagat tries to reversal and fails. In this situation, the jumping attack hits Sagat as he stands up, doing damage and often leading into a combo.

Sagat does not try to reversal, and forgets to block high or otherwise makes a dumb error. Again, the jumping attack hits as Sagat stands up, doing damage and often leading into a combo.

Sagat blocks high, blocking the attack. Most jumping attacks will typically leave the attacker at a neutral or advantageous situation when blocked. Make sure to pick the right jumping attack!

Sagat tries to reversal and succeeds. In this situation, the Tiger Uppercut’s startup invincibility will allow Sagat to go right through the jumping attack, and he will not get hit. However, because Tiger Uppercut has 5 frames of startup, the attacker has time to land and block the Tiger Uppercut, and then punish with whatever they want.

In specific games, the knocked down opponent may have additional options. For example, in SF4, Sagat could Focus Attack (link to Focus Attack definition) on wakeup, absorbing the jumping attack, and then try to dash away to safety. However, in general, these additional options all still result in advantageous or at least neutral situations for the attacker, making the Safe Jump a very powerful technique.

The exact timing of Safe Jump attacks depends on the specific characters involved, and not all characters are vulnerable to them. For example, in SF4, Ryu’s Shoryuken’s (all strengths) have only 3 frames of Startup. Due to SF4’s specific mechanics, characters who perform jumping attacks cannot block for 3 frames after landing (this is called Tripguard - link to Tripguard definition). As a result, it is impossible to Safe Jump Ryu in SF4, as his Shoryuken will hit before the attacker can land and block. In order to get the most out of this advanced technique, learn your matchups![/details]

Saving Attack/SADC: Japanese name for Focus Attack/FADC.Semi-infinite: A combo that appears to be an infinite but breaks after a certain number of repetitions. See also: Infinite.SGS: Shun Goku Satsu, or Instant Hell Murder. Another name for Akuma’s Raging Demon super attacks, done by inputting jab, jab, forward/back, short, fierce.Shoto: Characters trained in the Shotokan fighting style: Ryu, Ken, Akuma.SJC: Super Jump Cancel. Certain attacks in Marvel vs. Capcom 2, Guilty Gear, and other games can be canceled into a high jump by pressing down up as an attack lands.SPD: Spinning Piledriver. Zangief’s famous 360 command grab.Special/Super Cancel: Canceling the recovery frames of an attack into a special/super attack. For example, SF3 Chun-li’s crouch forward can be super canceled into her SA2 Houyoku-Sen. This is a way to hit-confirm attacks.SRK: Shoryuken.Stun: A [sometimes] hidden meter that when filled, causes a character to be “dizzied”. Fills when hit by attacks, and some characters will take more than others before becoming dizzy (Zangief has very high stun capacity, while on the other hand Seth has very little). Certain attacks apply more stun than others, such as Zangief’s aerial headbutt which grants a huge amount of stun.Sweep: An attack that must be blocked low and knocks the opponent down. Most characters have a sweep for their crouching roundhouse, or sometimes crouching fierce (SF3 Makoto, for example).

TAP: Balrog’s (Boxer) Turn Around Punch. An attack executed by holding all three punches or kicks and releasing them. Goes through projectiles at certain ranges and does more damage based on how long it was held.Target combo: Normals that cancel into another. For example, Ken’s standing strong>fierce, or Rufus’s standing short>roundhouse (shitty definition, will revise).Tatsu: Tatsumaki Sempukyaku, the Shotokan hurricane kick. Down, down-back, back, kick.Tick throw: A throw that is timed to land at the earliest frame an opponent can be thrown after blocking.Throw tech: Throws cannot be blocked, so a throw tech is how you stop the opponent’s grab. In most games it is done by inputting the throw command within a certain number of frames of the opponent throwing you.ToD Combo: Also known as the Touch of Death. Refers to a combo that kills the opponent from any amount of health. Originated with SF2, when one combo was often enough to dizzy an opponent and kill them afterward.Trade: Both players get hit with each other’s attacks upon collision. Occurs when both characters attack and their hitboxes coincide. See also: Hitbox.Turtle: A style of play that centers on waiting for your opponent to make the first move and reacting to what he does. Often called “cheap” by newer players. Certain characters are complimented well by this playstyle, such as Guile.

UOH: Universal Overhead. In SF3, every character had an overhead that was used by pressing MP+MK. See also: Overhead.Unblockable: Comes in two forms: 1) A move that must be avoided rather than blocked such as Akuma’s Raging Demon, or 2) A series of attacks that hit in a way that make it so that you cannot block them; hits high and low at the same time, hits behind and in front, etc.Untechable Knockdown: Knocking the opponent down so that they cannot quickly recover. Much of Akuma’s gameplay in SF4 revolves around knocking the opponent down with a sweep as it is an untechable knockdown.

Vortex: A style of play in which, after knocking the opponent down, you make them guess what you are going to do (and how they should block/react) and they are more likely to guess wrong than right. Also see: Mixup, Untechable Knockdown.

Wakeup: What you do when you are getting off the ground.

Zoning: Finding the perfect distance to limit your opponent’s options. Ryu wants to find the distance from which if his opponent jumps over a Hadouken, he can easily Shoryuken them out of the air.

EVO: Evolution, held in Las VegasSBO: Tougeki Super Battle Opera, held in Japan (qualifiers held in Japan, US, Europe, Korea, and China)NEC: Northeast Championships, held in PhiladelphiaSB: Season’s Beatings, held in ColumbusFR: Final Round, held in AtlantaMWC: Midwest Championships, held in Chicago??WCW: West Coast Warzone, held in Los Angeles

Negative edge: The input that occurs when a button is released. An example from BlazBlue, when playing Carl: Nirvana can be moved as long as drive is held down, and her attacks are executed on negative edge when drive is released (someone get me a better example for this one).

Putting it in words is always going to be harder than visuals. [media=youtube]O5twy_2fifs#t=6m42s[/media] does a great job explaining what Negative Edge is.

Negative edge: The input that occurs when a button is released. An example from BlazBlue, when playing Carl: Nirvana can be moved as long as drive is held down, and her attacks are executed on negative edge when drive is released (someone get me a better example for this one).

Meaty: An attack that hits an opponent as soon as they wake up to they are forced to block it. This is often an attack with high active frames such as SF4 M.Bison’s crouch short.

I dont think thats a good defintion of a meaty, but rather the situation most meaty attacks are used in. As I understood it, any attack can be used as a meaty as long as you are hitting the opponent with the later end of the active frames of the move, hence why moves with many active frames are good meaty attacks. The advantage of a meaty attack is that you get more frame advantage on hit and less frame disadvantage on block, as well there are some combos that can only be done meaty IE makoto’s meaty st.strong -> st. strong.